1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the transportation of objects, and particularly to the transportation of large objects which do not have flat bases nor co-planar support members such as legs or wheels. The word "base" is used to refer to the side or surface of an object on which the object is to rest during transportation. Thus, the invention is applicable to objects that do have one or more flat sides, but which are so shaped or dimensioned that it is impracticable for them to rest on their flat sides during transportation. Accordingly, objects with which the invention is concerned will be referred to hereinafter as "cylindrical objects" or "cylindrical loads", but it is to be understood that the invention is equally applicable to the transportation of objects which are not cylindrical in the strict geometric sense of the word, but have uniform or non-uniform, curved or angulated bases. The invention is especially suitable for the transportation of rolls or coils of steel sheeting and the like on flatbed trailers or rail cars.
2. Summary of Related Art
Among the most widely used forms of steel are hot and cold flat rolled sheets. Sheet steel comprises an essential element of many manufactured products, and a number of important industries are dependent upon a continuing and reliable source of this material in order to maintain the efficacy of their operations.
Notwithstanding the great importance of flat rolled sheet steel, its transportation has presented a continuous problem. The common and most efficient means of effecting such transportation is to wind the sheet steel into large and tightly wound coils, to band the coils, and to mound the coils on the flatbed of a truck or a railcar. These coils are quite heavy, generally weighing from one to ten tons or more and, because of the huge size and physical characteristics of the tightly wound sheet metal, tremendous forces are unleashed if the coil should come loose from the transportation vehicle and unwind. The result of such an unwind while the coil is being transported by truck on a crowded highway could be hazardous to people and equipment.
As a result, in the transportation of such heavy metal coils, it is generally necessary to utilize cables or chains to position the coil upon the truck or other transport vehicle. However, the conditions of transport often entail substantial vibration, so that adequate anchorage of the coil requires tight contact between the coil and the chains or cables used to anchor the coil to the supporting base. The combination of heavy vibration and tight contact between the chains or cables and the coil frequently causes damage to the coil, such as bending or severing of coil parts contacted by the chains or cables.
Efforts have been taken to minimize such damage by using such blocks, cardboard, and other items positioned between the coil and the chains or cables. These efforts have not been satisfactory because such protective members shift relative to the coil and the cable or chain, or are broken during transit, thereby enabling direct contact of the chain or cable with the coil and damage to the coil. Their use further entails additional labor in the loading and unloading of the coils.
A number of devices have been developed or suggested to attempt to solve the aforementioned problems. For instance, alternate coil protective members, designed to shield the coil from the securing chains or cables, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,875,617; 4,204,479; 4,526,500; and 5,538,376. These devices, however, have not been found to be effective in solving the abovementioned problems.
Other cylindrical load securing devices have been suggested which require a modified flatbed transportation vehicle, such as the devices illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,922,004 and 4,102,274. Such devices are overly complex and disadvantageously cannot be used with existing flatbed transportation vehicles.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a cylindrical load securing device which can securely retain a heavy cylindrical object on the flatbed of a transportation vehicle without causing damage to such object. It would be further desirable to provide such a load securing device which was relatively simple and easy to use, and which could be used in conjunction with existing flatbed transportation vehicles.